STATE GEOLOGIST. 41 
to have prejudiced the bonds in the eyes of the capitalists that were ex- 
pected to buy them. 
The following interesting account of this plant was furnished by 
Mr. Robert Campbell. It is published in full, even though it repeats part 
of what has already been said: | 
“After gas had been discovered in Hancock and Wood counties, Ohio, 
investors from nearby towns and cities, including Toledo, became inter- 
ested in territory of greater or less value. During 1887 and 1888 the 
towns of Findlay, Fostoria and Bowling Green were enjoying booms due 
to the fact that free gas for fuel was offered at these places as a bonus to 
manufacturers; but at Toledo no such offer could be made because the 
gas was furnished by a private corporation, The Northwestern Ohio Nat- 
ural Gas Company. Even though the Northwestern offered to enter into 
a contract to furnish natural gas for five years at the very low rate of 12 
cents per thousand cubic feet, still some of the Toledo investors in gas 
territory and their associates, the men who wished to reap a harvest of 
money by a boom advance in the values of real estate in and about Toledo, 
began in 1888 to agitate the municipal ownership of a natural gas plant. 
“So successful was this agitation that in January, 1889, in reply to a 
petition from citizens of Toledo, the General Assembly of Ohio passed 
an act, subject to the decision of the electors of Toledo as expressed at the 
polls in April, providing that the Governor should appoint a board of trus- 
tees to conduct the work of securing and maintaining a natural gas plant 
as soon as the necessary funds were obtained by the sale of city bonds 
issued expressly for that purpose. During the months previous to the day 
for voting either for or against the act the strife between the parties 
favoring or disapproving the project became heated, and every inducement 
was offered to secure the vote of even the least interested electors. ‘Free 
gas’ was the hosanna cried to the poor, while to others assurance was given 
by these promoters that the gas plant would pay for itself in five years, 
clear away the municipal debt in another five, and pay the expense of 
city government and improvements thereafter. As was to be expected, 
the poor and non-taxpaying residents, who had everything to gain and 
nothing to lose, rushed to the polls and overwhelmed the vote of the tax 
payers, who were almost without exception opposed to the project. 
“In accordance with the provisions of the act it now became the duty 
of the Governor to appoint a board of trustees, which was duly organized 
and began at once to negotiate for gas wells and territory. Naturally 
enough the territory most easily secured was the less valuable of the 
property of the investors who were promoting the scheme, for these men 
had no scruples about selling to the city their ‘high pressure’ wells as 
2,000,000 cubic feet producers, whereas in reality the well was only a 
50,000 cubic feet producer with almost no pressure at all. 
